The Demon's Labyrinth
by kairi's friend
Summary: Bill has been watching Gravity Falls for years, waiting for the twins to return and cross through the portal to reclaim their throne. One day, they finally come...but now Bill's not so sure he wants to help them. Will Dipper and Mabel survive the trials ahead and reclaim their throne?
1. Prologue

A long time ago, all the many realms were connected and guarded by the Kingdom, and in the Kingdom there lived twins, a Prince and Princess, destined to follow their parents' footsteps. They were bright and curious about the universe around them, and every day they would explore new places and learn new things. Their parents said they could cross over into any realm.

But they were told to stay away from the portal at the South Gate.

For a long time, the twins kept away from the South Gate - but one day, the portal flashed a bright blue, and they no longer could contain their curiosity. They snuck out of the palace and crossed through the portal. They saw people on the other side, who claimed to open the portal for scientific reasons to benefit mankind - but one of them attacked the twins. Before he could finish them off, someone from the Kingdom - a protector - emerged from the portal, and a short battle ensued, giving the twins enough time to cross back through the portal. They didn't cross back alone, however, as two people followed them through, one of them being the attacker. The twins fled into the labyrinth in the garden, but the bad man pursued them, demanding to know about the secrets of the universe and gain power.

He cornered the twins at the very center of the labyrinth, and he attacked them once more. The protector raced to help the twins, but there was no hope of saving them. In rage, the protector summoned his greatest powers, used them to defeat the bad man once and for all. The power surge almost crossed the portal, causing an apocalypse on the other side, but the King and Queen closed the portal after throwing the second intruder into the dungeon. The King and Queen grieved at the loss of their children, but the protector revealed he placed an enchantment on them right before they died: he assured them that the souls of the Prince and Princess would return one day - perhaps in a different time, a different place, a different form, but the twins would return and claim their throne.

The King and Queen ordered the protector to watch over the portal's town, to make sure no one but the twins would cross over. For decades he watched the town, waiting and waiting, slowly slipping into madness. People in this world kept trying to cross the portal, trying to uncover the greatest secrets of the universe. He foiled them all, wondering when the royal twins would ever show up.

In the summer of 2012, they finally did.

**A/N: This story is adopted from "The Demon's Lullaby" by Sapphire Teardrops. I had an idea where the story could go, so here it is! I'm sticking with the concept of the original story, so this will follow a _Pan's Labyrinth _kind of arc. But I'm also using episodes from the show, showing how I think the series could go. Hope you guys like it!  
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**For the portal-gate, picture Stargate.**


	2. The Arrival

"Dipper? Dipper!"

The brown-haired boy keeps his eyes shut as he swats the air in his sister's direction. "Not now, Mabel," he groans, shifting in his seat on the coach bus.

"C'mon, bro bro," Mabel says. "You're missing this!" He imagines her face pressed against the back window, her brown eyes wide. "Check out all these trees! I've never seen so many at once!"

Dipper ignores her, trying to catch some more ZZZs. He feels his cheek slide an inch down the window he's using as a pillow, his hat lifting an inch off his head. The noise blurs to nothingness, his breathing slows...finally, he can get more sleep, see more of that strange dream...

His eyes shoot open when something digs into his armpits. "M-Mabel, stop!" he says, cracking a grin and giggling.

"Time to wake up, sleepyhead!" Mabel says, almost laying on top of her brother as she tickles him awake.

"I'm up! I'm up!" Mabel sits back in her seat, smirking at her brother. He straightens in his seat and readjusts his brown hat. "How long until we're there?"

Shrug. "Maybe ten minutes."

"That long? You could've let me sleep longer!" He gives her a teasing glare. "You woke me up from my dream!"

"Ooh, did it have fairy princesses in it?" His sister beams, flashing her silver braces.

Dipper stares at her. "Why would my dream have fairy princesses?"

Another shrug.

He looks over the top of the seat in front of him - but just like when they got on the bus at Piedmont, they are the only two passengers. Nevertheless, when he sits back down, he beckons his sister closer and says in a lower voice, "I dreamed of that maze again."

Mabel's smile vanishes. Ever since they were really little, the twins have had a recurring dream of being lost in a dark, tall maze. They never told anyone else about it, not even their parents. "Anything new?"

"I think there was a shadowy guy following me, but you woke me up before I could see any more."

"Sorry."

The twins fall silent, each one thinking about the mysterious maze. Lately, they've been having this dream more and more, but other than small things - like the shadow figure this time, or the triangle from last week - nothing changes. Just the same dark pathways, midnight sky, and looming sense of danger.

"Next stop," the bus driver says over the speaker, "Gravity Falls."

Mabel and Dipper press their faces to the back window, watching the pine trees turn into buildings as they enter the sleepy Oregon town. Mabel then suggests playing What's Under the Seat, which Dipper halfheartedly agrees to play. In no time at all, they arrive at the bus station. They grab their suitcases and make their way from the very back of the bus to the front door. Dipper carefully steps down the stairs, but Mabel has a spring in her step as she descends. Both of them look up to see a wrinkly, old man in a black suit, glasses, and red fez smiling at them.

"Hey, kiddos!" their great-uncle Stan says, throwing his arms wide out. "Welcome to Gravity Falls."

* * *

><p><em>A few days later...<em>

Something just happened. He can feel it in his very being.

He blinks, and his vision changes to show him Gravity Falls. Specifically the forest behind the Mystery Shack. He doesn't care for the shack at all - in fact, that's where the intruders came from. He sinks a couple inches at the memory: he remembers having to fight the bad man to protect the royal family, he'd rather not have to do it again with someone else.

But the shack isn't what catches his eye. It's the boy, one of the twins from the bus. He's looking through something...the journal! But how? The third one was hidden in a place with an enchantment so only the reincarnated twins could find it. There was nothing he could do to keep Crescent Claw from getting the first journal, and he had no way of getting to Journal #2 before Pentagram , so he did what he could to protect the last journal. And now, some boy's reading from it.

"Hello!" says the female twin, popping up behind a fallen tree, startling her brother. "Whatcha readin', some nerd thing?"

_Well, it kinda is_, he thinks with a chuckle.

The boy stammers before saying, "It's nothing."

The girl imitates the boy, then laughs. "Are you actually not gonna tell me?"

Gompers, the goat, then comes up and starts nibbling on the journal.

_Wait a minute_, he thinks. _That goat only appears when there's something big going on. Either there's something supernatural going on I'm not aware of, or fate led those twins here._ He squints at the twins, gets a better look at them. His eye widens. "It can't be!" he hisses aloud. He blinks again, and his vision reverts back to the two empty thrones in front of him. He turns around, hands clasped in front of him. He thinks back to thirty years ago, to that one fateful day, images flashing on his triangular body as he recalls the events. The royal twins were dying; he cast a spell on them so they could come back someday, somehow. He also wiped their memories so they wouldn't remember the pain or suffering they went through. The twins in the forest are slightly paler than the royal twins - other than that, they could be identical. What if these two - "Dipper" and "Mabel," as they're called - are the ones he's been waiting for?

He blinks, and his body reverts back to its glowing yellow form. Hands behind his back, he paces back and forth through the air. _These two better be the twins I've been waiting for_, he thinks. _The portal's supposed to open again this summer, and I can't mess this up._


	3. Pentagram's Deal

**A/N: Starting this chapter, I'll be intertwining the show into the story. Hope you guys like it!**

**Bill's POV**

"_Triangulum, entangulum..._"

Looks like someone's summoning me again. I adjust my top hat and cross into Gravity Falls through a mini-portal of my own. This time, I do it slowly, more dramatically, even adding a mysterious cackle before finally popping through. Hey, I need to have fun with my job every now and then!

I glance at the black-and-white landscape around me, filled with a sense of nostalgia. "Oh, oh, Gravity Falls!" I cry. "It is good to be back!" I float down to the pale chubby boy and circle him, saying, "The name's Bill Cipher, and I take it your some kind of living ventriloquist dummy?" I chuckle at my own joke. "I'm just kidding, I know who you are, Gideon."

The boy's eyes widen, a bead of sweat forming at his brow. "Wh-who are you? H-How do you know my name?" he asks.

I wish I can smirk at the pudgy boy as I say, "Oh, I know lots of things." I show several images on my body to prove my point - and also, to creep out the little creep. Ha!

In my peripheral vision I see Shooting Star hiding behind a bush with Question Mark. I remember the royal twins used to love it when I did tricks, so just for her, I say, "Hey, look what I can do." I spot a deer nearby, and with one gesture, I yank its teeth out, summoning them into my hand. "Deer teeth, for you, kid!" I laugh as I dump them into Pentagram's hands.

He shrieks and drops them. "You're insane!"

"Sure I am, what's your point?" I replace the deer's teeth, and it runs away. I hope Shooting Star appreciated me messing around with Pentagram, considering how much she doesn't like him. Still, it's not quite the same doing tricks to other people. I miss making the twins shriek with delight and beg me to use my powers again.

Gideon stutters for a moment before finally spitting, "Listen here, demon! I have a job for you: I need you to enter the mind of Stanford Pines and steal the code to his safe!"

_Yeah, sure_, I think, laughing at the thought of being an errand-runner. "Wait!" I blurt out, the full demand registering in my head. I turn around and mumble, "Stan Pines..." How do I know that name? Two images flash on my body as I remember that night thirty years ago: an older man, and an alchemy symbol.

The same symbol on the prisoner in the dungeon in the Kingdom.

My eye widens, and my body turns yellow again. "You know what, kid? You've convinced me," I say, turning around, hands behind my back. "I'm sold! I'll help you with this and in return you can help me with something I've been working on. We'll work out the details later." I keep quiet about the Ten Symbols prophecy, and I also don't tell Pentagram what exactly he'd be helping me with. Why spoil the surprise?

We shake hands with blue fire. The deal is made. "Well," I chirp, "time to go invade Stan's mind. This should be fun!" As I depart, I leave a message for Shooting Star: "Remember, reality is an illusion, the universe is a hologram, buy gold! Bye!" In a flash of light, I return home.

"Oh, this is wonderful!" I can't help but say aloud, throwing my hands in the air. "That Gideon sure is dumb!" I cackle as I picture what the runt's pig face will look like when he realizes just what he helped me out with. And to think I was hired to help that dummy in his quest for ultimate knowledge. Ha!

I stop laughing when I remember the King and Queen. They told me to be on the lookout for their children's souls, to return them as soon as I found them. But why should I? Those twins were the only royals in the entire Kingdom I ever got along with. When those kids go home, they'll be taught to be the next rulers. They'll know every single thing about the universe.

Even the few secrets that I don't know.

Hey, I know lots of things, but I don't know everything. And considering I've been working for the Kingdom for a few hundred years, you'd think they'd let me in on some of the juicy stuff. But nope. I'm just the guy in charge of watching over all the realms. I'm just the guy who's supposed to keep an entire War of the Worlds from happening. Why, the King and Queen are lucky to have someone like me on their side! They should really start paying me. No, really, they don't pay me at all.

It was part of the deal we made: I would work as a protector for the Kingdom, and they would let me reside on palace grounds. Okay, so it's not that bad, but still. The only fun I get is when I play mischievous pranks on people while I work.

Still, I don't want Pine Tree and Shooting Star to end up like their parents. Those twins are the only fun ones around.

I tap the space below my eye since I don't have a chin. Maybe I could convince the kids somehow to find out the huge, all-important secrets of the universe for me. Yeah, that might work. Maybe I'll finally learn something about who caused the apocalypse on my world.

But I'll still need Pentagram to help me. It won't matter if the twins help me out or not if the apocalypse comes here, too.


	4. Memory Maze

**A/N: I'm glad you guys like the story so far! :)**

**Bill's POV**

I slip out of the Kingdom. Time to go to work! I cross into Gravity Falls and zoom through the town. Hey, there's those red robe freaks that call themselves the Blind Eye. Ha! What a stupid name!

I'd really like to stay and watch them drag Tyler away from the bikers' bar, but I'm more excited about invading Stan's mind. Truth be told, I'm more excited about using the twins to help me invade Stan's mind. C'mon, you readers don't seriously think I don't expect them to follow me. First off, how many snappy, talking triangles do you know? Right, none. How could the kids not want to learn any more about me?

Second, they're the royal twins. They're the most curious kids I know. When something piques their interest, you can bet they will follow that thing through. I'm sure you know about all of Shooting Star's boy crushes and Pine Tree's obsession with figuring out the supernatural. You know what I mean.

And third, they actually care about that smelly uncle - er, grunkle. Whether Gideon summoned me or someone else to invade Stan's mind, those two will be the ones to go into Stan's mind to protect him. Why they would bother with someone like Crescent Claw, I have no idea. Don't they know what he and his brother almost did?

Oh, wait, they wouldn't. I erased their memories when they died - but only so they wouldn't have to remember all the bad stuff that had happened to them! See, I'm not that bad of a guy, so don't give me that doubtful look. Yeah, I'm talkin' to _**you,**_ pal, in the tacky shirt!

Anyway, I'm here at the shack now, and I'm inside the living room. Crescent Claw is snoring in his arm chair, and Pine Tree is sweeping the carpet. Wait, sweeping the carpet? I understand if the floor was wood, but what weirdo makes a kid sweep a fluffy rug?! And they call _me_ insane!

"Ah, oh, no...sorry," Stan says aloud, moving in his sleep.

I laugh out loud, since no one can hear me. Look at Pine Tree's face! Hahaha! I wish I had a camera!

Shooting Star and Question Mark enter the room, the fat one eating a bunch of...what are those? Burrito Bites? Eesh, that guy can eat. Then Pine Tree is kind enough to read about the entry in the journal about me: "The most powerful and dangerous creature I ever encountered." Aw, wasn't that nice?

Anyway, now that the gang's all here, time to start the fun. I lower myself into Stan's mind, and everything shines bright for a moment before turning into his black-and-white mindscape. I'm tempted to explore his worst fears, see if I can mess around with the guy more...but I should probably wait for the twins and that man-baby. Besides, I'm mischievous, not evil.

Another light flashes farther away, and the kids finally arrive. I pull out my cane and swing it around as the three admire the creepiness of Stan's mind.

I can hear the fat one saying, "Huh, figured there'd be a lot more hot old ladies." Of course you'd think there'd be ladies here, you creep!

"Remember," Shooting Star says, "we've got to look out for the triangle guy."

"Yeah," I repeat, floating down behind them, "look out for the triangle guy!"

"It's him," says the fatso. "It's the guy!"

Shooting Star glares and says, "You leave our uncle's brain alone, you isosceles monster!"

Isosceles monster? Really? When she charges at me, I just let her jump through me. I check my watch, and sure enough, two seconds later out she comes, rolling on the ground. "Gotcha! Wait, what?" She stares at me in surprise. Huh, guess she doesn't remember that trick.

"Ah, Stan's family," I say, a bit upset the twins are even a part of Crescent Claw's family. "Question Mark, Shooting Star, Pine Tree, I had a hunch I might bump into you." I point my finger and shoot a beam through Pine Tree.

He freaks out at the hole in his chest. Man, the twins really don't remember anything of their past lives. He used to like that trick. Mabel sticks her arm through with a "boop." At least she seems to remember.

Dipper shoves his sister's arm out of him and demands, "What do you want with our uncle's mind anyways?"

I lean backwards, a hand behind my back. "Oh, just the code to the old man's safe." I tell them about the layout of memories and bait them with the knowledge I'm gonna steal the code and Gideon will help me in return.

"Not if we stop you," Mabel says.

"Ha, fat chance," I retort. "I'm the Master of the Mind. I even know what you're thinking right now!" Not like it's that hard, though. Have you met that girl?

"That's impossible," she says. "No one can guess what I'm thinking."

With a snap of my fingers, I summon those two tall dudes she likes. Ugh, what does she see in them? "You're out of your league, kids. Turn around now before you see something you might regret." That's the last warning I'm giving those two. "Later, suckers!" I fly backwards into the Shack. I hide up above the front door - not like there's anything to hide behind, it's just a bunch of empty gray space.

Hey, why are you giving me that look? Is this about the warning? I had to, okay? Sure, I wanna use the kids to help me find the code to the safe - that'll get at Stan if he ever finds out - but I know what that man is like. What if they find a certain memory of thirty years ago? Are they really ready to remember what Crescent Claw and Black Glasses did? What if seeing those memories somehow triggers old memories to come back? I might have erased them a long time ago, but they're not gone forever. Boy, I sure hope those kids don't find any of the bad memories.

The door opens below me, and the gang enter the Twilight Zone. Haha, just kidding, though I've always wanted to call this place that. I follow them into the memories section, see them run off to start opening doors. Uh oh. Maybe I should follow them to make sure they don't open the wrong doors. I head down the hallway.

Wait a minute. I don't know which doors are the ones for the bad memories. I slap my forehead. How could I be so stupid? If the kids find out too soon, there go my plans for the Kingdom! Grr, guess I'll have to wing it.

So far, they're just finding weird memories of the old man, like when he was in jail (that was hilarious!), when he was on that date with Lazy Susan (she cried after you ditched her, you jerk!), and then we come to the Dipper memories. I know for sure there aren't any memories in there that'll spoil things too soon. Pine Tree slips away from the group and enters the Dipper's Memories section. I leave him and follow the others. Question Mark goes off down another hallway without telling anyone, and they don't notice he's gone. Good! I disguise myself as the fatso and catch up with the group.

"I hope we find it soon," Mabel says, frowning a little, looking like a sad puppy.

"Aw, don't worry, Mabel," I say in Soos' voice. "I'm sure we'll find it soon."

"I found a lab," the blue-haired dummy says. I forget which one's Craz and which one's Xyler.

"Labs are totally rad!" the blond airhead says.

A lab? Oh, no!

"Hey, Mabel," the blue-haired one says, "I think I see-"

"Burrito Bites!" I shout. I feel stupid, but I can't let Shooting Star find that memory. When the others stare at me, I chuckle nervously and say, "I'm all out of Burrito Bites."

"Don't worry, Soos," Mabel says, patting my big hand with a smile. "When we're out of here, you can have all the Burrito Bites you want."

I smile at her, and the whole group continues, even the two tall dummies. Seriously, what does Shooting Star see in those walking Ken dolls?

We walk a little bit longer, and I call out as Soos would, "Code to Stan's safe, where are you?"

The two idiots start opening and closing doors. At least they're not finding anything spoilerish.

I open a door and see Stan typing a code into the vending machine in the store and going behind it. "If only people knew the truth," he says, "that hidden behind this vending machine, I secretly have a-"

"BORING!" I shout and slam the door. That was a close one. I don't know what the old man does down there anymore, but I know that lab is down there and that the portal's supposed to open up again this summer. I've gotta be ready, and I can't get the kids involved so soon.

We come to a door marked "Top Secret," but when Shooting Star opens the door, it's a rather disturbing memory of Stan talking to his belly and feeding it crackers. I've never so badly wanted to gouge out my eyeball after seeing that.

"Ugh, we've been searching forever," I say. "What if the triangle guy finds the memory before we do?"

"If we wanna find Stan's memory," she says, "we gotta think like Stan. He's always hiding stuff, right?"

"Yeah," I say, eager to share something scandalous about the old man, "like how he hides all his arrest warrants under that rug in the gift shop."

"Soos, that's it!" she cries, a huge smile on her face. "Look!"

We look around the corner - on the floor is a rug with a fortune teller on it. Mabel pulls the rug aside - we all grin when we see the trap door. We open it up, and sure enough, it's the code! I shut the door and say, "Dude, we found it!"

But then Shooting Star wants to destroy the memory. I can't let that happen! What about my plans? "Wait," I tell her, holding a hand out, "maybe I should do it. My big fat arms are great at destroying stuff."

"Oh, okay."

I focus on the door, hoping to steal it and get out of here before they realize I'm not the real Soos. I finally have the memory!

"Hey, guys," the real Soos says, coming up to us, "I just saw a memory of Stan rollerskating and wearing short-shorts. Didn't look...didn't look half bad."

I can't even begin to describe how wrong that is. So wrong.

Question Mark then catches on. "Hey, something weird's goin' on here."

I start laughing right then. It really took them that long to figure out the double? I morph back into my comfortable triangle body, creeping the kids out more, and boast, "Boy, you kids sure are gullible! I knew you'd lead me straight to the code!" I keep laughing, but when I see their confused faces, say, "It's funny how dumb you are."


	5. Question Mark?

**A/N: Glad you guys like the story so far! And Happy New Year! :D**

**Curious Person: No, Xyler and Craz never mention a lab in the show. I put that in the chapter to explain why Bill followed the kids and what he wants to keep them from remembering, at least for the time being.**

* * *

><p><strong><span>Bill's POV<span>**

I land on the floor of the black-and-white shack, checking behind me to see if any of those kids followed me. A teeny part of me feels bad for doing this - I may not like Stan that much, but I don't want that pig Gideon getting the shack either. Once Pentagram helps me with what I need, I'll find a way to take the shack back from him and give it to the twins.

My body vibrates and makes a ringing sound. I tap my bow tie to open up a screen with Pentagram's pudgy face and say, "Yellow?"

"Bill, did you find the memory with the combination yet?" the boy demands.

"Relax, shortstack, I've got it right here."

"Perfect!" Man, I'd love to wipe the smirk off that runt's face. "Now, give it to me and I'll fulfill my end of the bargain."

"Finally!" I pull out the memory, tell him to get ready, and peer into the trapdoor. "It's thirteen...fourty-four..." Something hits the memory and knocks it out of my hand. "Ah, nonono, wait, no!"

Too late. It falls into another memory - of the bottomless pit. Memory Stan says, "Whoo, whatever that was, it's gone forever." The door slams shut.

I stare wide-eyed at the people behind me. How did those kids catch up to me so fast, and with a Nyarf gun? Seriously, how did they get that? Did Shooting Star remember the power of the mindscape and call forth a dart gun?

"The deal's off!" Gideon shouts.

No, no, no, this can't be happening. "Wait, no, wait!" I beg.

"I'm switchin' to Plan B." Gideon hangs up on me. I feel broken, betrayed.

Like I did a long time ago, thanks to the King and Queen.

I pull myself together, turning red with anger. "You!" I whirl around to the gang. "You can't even imagine what you just cost me!" Fire forms in my hands. "Do you have any idea what I'm like - **when I'm mad?"** I flash different symbols on them, then trap them in a circle of fire and raise the ground beneath us into the universal mindscape. I make myself grow ten times my size. I don't care if Shooting Star is the reincarnated Princess. She has no idea what she's done! So she and her friends must pay!

**"Eat nightmares!"**

* * *

><p>Dipper wanders around Stan's mind. Mabel, Soos, and the dream guys already went off to stop Bill. He stuffs his hands in his pockets. <em>Maybe I should've gone with them<em>, he thinks. He tries to ignore his feelings of guilt by searching for the exit. Instead, he finds the memory again of Stan talking to Soos about him. He's about to shut the door when he realizes Stan was talking about himself!

He listens to the rest of the memory, and when he hears how proud Stan is of him, he rests a hand on the filmy barrier separating memory from maze - and falls right into the memory. Stan and Soos stare at him. "Whoa, kid, what are you doing here?" Memory Stan says. "Nice hole in your chest, by the way. Let's fix that up." With a point of his finger, the hole vanishes.

"What the?" Dipper is amazed. "How'd you do that?"

"Word to the wise, kid, we're in the mind. You can do whatever you can imagine in here." To prove his point, he summons a soda and opens it.

Dipper feels as if he's heard that advice before, like he's been in the mindscape before. "Well, how about that."

He then hears Mabel and Soos screaming and Bill laughing. "Oh, my gosh! What am I doing? I have to stop Bill!" He runs out of the memory, and the door shuts behind him. He sprints down the hallway and around the corner, searching everywhere for them. All he finds are more doors and more hallways. He growls. "Stupid maze," he mutters, coming to a stop just outside of the entrance to the Memories Maze. "How am I supposed to find them now?"

A voice in his head says, with a slight echo, "If you're ever stuck, try flying around. You'd be surprised at how much you can see."

That voice sounds familiar, _really_ familiar. But how? He pushes this question aside, squeezes his eyes shut, and pictures himself flying through the air. He feels his legs dangle as he rises into the air. "Haha, yes!" he says with a fistpump. He opens his eyes and looks up at the ceiling. Wait, there's no ceiling. Huh, that's oddly convenient. He soars up and up.

"One nightmare comin' up!" he hears. That sounds a lot like Bill. He follows the voice up and up, and soon he sees a stone version of Stan's head. He flies higher and higher, a blue glow surrounding his body.

Dipper finally makes it to the top. "Hey, Bill!"

The red triangle does a double-take. _**"What?!"**_**  
><strong>

"Nice bow tie!" Dipper shoots lasers from his eyes and blasts a hole through Bill. _Let's see how he likes it._

"Dipper!" his sister says, she and Soos more than happy to see him.

He tells them the secret of the mindscape and they all use it to fight Bill. They all work together to open up a portal to kick Bill out of Stan's mind. The demon panics and screams, _**"Enough!"**_

* * *

><p><span><strong>Bill's POV<strong>

"You know, I'm impressed with you guys," I admit, dusting off my top hat before setting it back on my head. "You're a lot more clever than you look, especially the fat one." Seriously, how did Question Mark know to use his Symbol? "So I'm gonna let you kids off the hook. You might come in handy later. **But know this:** a darkness approaches. A day will come in the future when everything you care about will change.

"Until then, I'll be watching you." I show them all the Ten Symbols prophecy before disappearing and returning to my home in the Kingdom. I plop down in my armchair and slouch a little.

How did Soos do that? I mean, sure, his Symbol is the Question Mark, but how did he know to use that to fight? And Dipper and Mabel didn't use theirs. It makes sense they wouldn't, because they don't remember anything and, besides, I've hidden the Ten Symbols prophecy real well after that stupid author went and drew it in his journal. Looks like I'll have to keep an eye on Question Mark. If he figured out about his Symbol, who's to say the others won't? I can't let them mess up my plans. I've been waiting for too long for an opportunity like this, and I'm not about to let them make the same mistake that stupid author, his brother, and that old kook did a long time ago!

"Bill Cipher."

I'd know that voice echoing through the air anywhere. I sigh. Meeting with the King and Queen right now is not what I want to do after facing the twins. Besides, the past thirty years haven't exactly been the best around here. Their Royal Highnesses have been freaking out about their poor children's souls (even though I tell them all the time I'm looking out for them), they're barely getting things done around here, and they're becoming more secretive and paranoid all the time. If they'd just let me in on a deep, dark secret or two, they wouldn't be so stressed out.

"Bill Cipher," the King's voice repeats. "Come to the palace now."

I rise out of my seat, and straighten my hat and bow tie. If they ask me anything about the twins, I'll make up something. I don't want them finding the twins so soon. I open the door of my little house and fly out. Swatting a few fairies out of my face, I float over to the palace, my eye flickering to the garden labyrinth on the other side of the huge lawn. I quickly glance away and speed up a little, pushing away the memories of chasing that rotten human and seeing the twins' corpses.

The inside of the palace is pretty spiffy, but I don't pay attention as I make my way down the hallway to the throne room. Hovering just outside, I don't need to open the door to know they just need me to discuss the portal problem near the vampire village. Boy, it's a good thing Shooting Star doesn't know about the vampire village, or she'd go crazy. I adjust my tie one more time before heading inside.


	6. Nightmare

"Mabel, that's enough!" Dipper says, turning to her. "If Stan won't get the shack back from Gideon, then we've gotta do it ourselves."

"Gideon may have the upper hand," his sister says with a smirk, "but we have one thing he doesn't. A grappling hook!" She holds up the hook.

At the same time, her brother says, "The journal!" He holds up the book.

"Oh, the journal." Mabel lowers the grappling hook and pumps her fist in the air. "Journal!"

She watches Dipper go over to the couch and flip through the pages, looking for something they can use to stop Gideon from destroying the Mystery Shack and building Gideonland. "The sooner we stop Gideon, the sooner we'll be out of this nightmare."

Mabel sits down next to him, her smile fading. "Hey, Dipper," she says, fiddling with the metal claws of the hook, "remember that maze dream we keep having?"

"Yeah," he says distractedly, staring at page after page.

"Well, uh..." _Just say it._ "Remember that triangle in the maze with the one eye?"

Dipper looks up from the journal. "One eye?" he repeats, the significance becoming clearer.

"You don't think..."

"It couldn't be!"

The twins stare at each other. "Okay," Mabel says, resting the grappling hook on her lap and holding up her fingers to tick off different things. "We know it's a triangle, and we know it's got one eye. That doesn't mean it's Bill, though, right?"

"Right." Dipper shuts the book and lays it aside. "For all we know, it could just be a drawing on one of the walls of the maze. Or we're just mixing up the triangle with that other guy in the maze. That guy looked human at least. Maybe the eye came from him."

"Maybe." But neither twin is convinced entirely.

Soos' grandma carries a tray of milk and cookies into the room. "Would the twins like a treat?" she says kindly.

They smile at her and each grab two chocolate chip cookies and a glass of milk. "Thanks, Abuelita," Mabel says.

"Anything for Soos' friends." Abuelita sets the tray on the table and turns to the kids. "I'm so sorry about the shack. Soos loved working there." She frowns at her hands.

Both twins feel for her. Dipper reaches out and pats one of her hands. "It'll be alright, Abuelita. I have a feeling we're going to be back in the Mystery Shack before you know it." The kids exchange conspiratorial glances.

"Oh, just look at you," Abuelita says, pinching Dipper's cheek much to his chagrin. "Just like a Prince Charming coming to save the day." She leaves the twins on the couch.

Dipper doesn't know why Abuelita's "prince" comment resonates with him so strongly. He pushes the thought from his mind and bites into the moist cookie. "So," he says with his mouth full, "got any idea how we're gonna fight Gideon?"

Mabel swallows her bite before talking. "We could use fairies."

He glares at her. "We are not using fairies, especially after Soos killed that one outside our bedroom window."

"I know." Mabel stares into her milk glass. "I guess I'm still thinking about that dream." She feels her brother's eyes on her. "I just remember seeing fairies once, that's all."

She looks up when she feels a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, Mabel," Dipper assures her. "It's just a dream. It can't hurt you." He gives her a small smile, which she returns. They finish their snack before getting ready for bed, hopeful they will never have to worry about the maze, or Bill, ever again.

But their dreams that night prove that wrong.

* * *

><p>They're running from something, but they don't know what. "Down here!" Mabel shouts, pointing down another dark path. The twins round the corner and pump their arms and legs as hard as they can to get away from the person chasing them.<p>

"Stop right there!" the person says.

The twins just run faster. They turn down more paths, but they know they're lost in the labyrinth. They round another corner.

Dead end. They screech to a halt, desperately looking around them for something, anything, to get them away from this man.

"Well, well, well," a dark voice behind them says. They slowly turn around to see him. "Just the kiddies I've been looking for."

"What do you want from us?" Dipper demands.

"I want to know what this place is, where the supernatural comes from, and what's so special about Gravity Falls." He steps towards them. "Now, be good little kids and tell me everything, or..." He holds up something that shines steel gray in the moonlight.

Even though the twins have never seen a gun, they know there's one aimed at them right now. "But we don't know anything!" Dipper says.

"Don't lie to me."

"We really don't!" Mabel insists.

"You're running out of time." He cocks the gun.

Dipper and Mabel exchange glances. Their parents never told them any of these secrets, and they don't know anything about Gravity Falls. That was the one portal they were told to stay away from.

"Time's up," he says.

BANG!

Mabel stares in horror as her brother crumples to the ground, clutching his stomach and moaning. She hears another bang and feels a strong pain sear through her stomach. She falls down and wraps her arms around her middle. She sneaks a little glance at her hands. They are covered in crimson.

"Look at what this has come to," he says. "You could've been good kids and told me everything. But now, you won't live to see the next day."

"Neither will you!" the protector says, swooping down and punching the guy in the nose. The villain groans and clutches his nose, dropping his gun in the process. The protector snaps his fingers, and the gun dissolves into a pile of dirt.

Mabel can't keep her eyes open much longer. She tries to call the protector over, so she and her brother can be near a friend before they pass on - but her voice fails her, and she sighs, shutting her eyes. "No, wait, no!" she hears someone say. She feels something touch her head, and she squints up at the protector. Are those tears in his eye? "I can't lose you guys, too!"

Her hand shakes as she reaches up to touch his bow tie. "Take care," she says, before her vision darkens.

CHING!

A flash of light blinds the twins for a moment, and when it disappears, they are sitting upright, gasping for breath in the middle of Abuelita's living room. They stare wide-eyed at each other. It's a good thing they didn't scream this time, as they don't want to wake up Grunkle Stan, Soos, or Abuelita. Communicating only through glances and nods, they quietly slip out of their beds and into the kitchen. They don't dare turn the light on, choosing instead to rely on the faint starlight and moonlight coming through the window.

"What was that?" Dipper whispers.

"I dunno," Mabel says. "We've never had that kind of dream before."

They stand there in silence, each one processing the nightmare they just had. Mabel shudders. "It felt so real being shot."

"Yeah." His eyes widen. "Hey, did you see a 'protector' coming for us?"

"Yeah."

"Did you get a good look at him?"

They stare at each other, confused and horrified by the one-eyed triangle they saw. "But why did he say he couldn't lose us, too?" Mabel whispers.

Dipper shrugs. "He could just be trying to trick us."

"...Hey, Dipper, you don't think Bill sent these dreams to confuse us, do you?"

"Nah, besides, we've been having these dreams since we were little. We didn't meet Bill until a couple days ago."

But somehow, the twins feel like they have met Bill before, a long time ago. And that it was no coincidence he was in their dream.


	7. Portal's Rising

Bill blinks to change his vision from the inside of his house to the twins as they hide in the bushes outside the fence surrounding the Mystery Shack. He doesn't know what they're planning to do to steal the shack back from Pentagram. He does sense that the twins didn't get a good night's sleep last night. He wishes he knew what they were dreaming about - but he promised himself never to invade their minds unless necessary, and besides, even if he were to invade their minds, they'd stop dreaming. It comes with being a dream demon: as soon as he appears in someone's mind, they stop dreaming so they can talk to him. If he wanted to know their dreams, he'd have to find the dream section of their mind, and he'd rather not put in the extra work.

As Pine Tree flips through the pages of the journal, he comes upon the portal page. Bill tenses. He knows the twins don't know about the portal just yet, but he can't help but worry that they could ruin everything too soon. Thankfully, Shooting Star interrupts and says that they need an army. He stops watching them when they head inside the forest to find the gnomes.

His vision back to seeing the inside of his little house, Bill paces back and forth, hands behind his back. He knows that they'll stop Gideon and that he'll go to jail. He knows they'll get the Mystery Shack back. He knows the twins will fight against the government agents.

What he doesn't know is if they can handle the three tasks ahead of them, or if they'll survive the rest of the summer.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Later that day...<strong>_

"Sorry, kids," Stan says, frowning at his great-niece and nephew in the window of the bus. "It's for the best." He turns away so his heart won't break seeing the bus take off with the kids inside - though he glances one last time over his shoulder at the departing bus. He'd already called the kids' parents today saying he couldn't take care of them anymore, so they should be waiting for the kids in Piedmont.

"I'm so sorry, Mister Pines," Wendy says, rubbing the back of her neck when the bus is out of sight.

"It's not your fault," he says, trudging back to Abuelita's house. He'd rather spend the rest of his time alone, sulking over what he's lost: the kids, his home, Journal #1, his way through the portal.

The portal. He stops outside the front door to the house, closes his eyes, and sighs. Without the lab under the shack, there's no way he can cross through the portal now. He'll never get to exploit his discoveries and share them with Dipper and Mabel...and he won't get to introduce them to their grandfather. If he's still alive.

* * *

><p><em><strong>Later that night...<strong>_

Bill passes through the triangular window into Pine Tree and Shooting Star's room, completely invisible as the twins settle into bed. He'd never admit it to anyone, but he was freaking out during that fight on the train tracks bridge. At one point, he wanted to help them, to keep them alive longer - but unless someone summons him, it's really hard for him to cross over so everyone can see him. Like, he's only done it on his own once before.

He doesn't mind behind in shadow form now, watching Pine Tree and Shooting Star drift off into sleep. He beams at them, proud of how brave and smart they were. _Whoa, there!_ he thinks. _Don't even think about that! They're not your kids!_ That last thought reminds Bill of how lonely he is.

He turns away from the drowsy twins, staring at the triangular window he just crossed through. He knows it's not the kids' fault his family's dead, but still. A part of him wants to whisk them away, keep them from finding their parents and becoming the next King and Queen. He doesn't want them following that legacy.

On the other hand, he knows he could be in very big trouble if he doesn't return the twins to the Kingdom. Time's running out. If he's going to use the twins to overthrow the King and Queen, he needs to form a plan soon.

Minutes later, the twins are sound asleep, the pig curled up with Shooting Star. Bill gets an eerie feeling. The last time he saw the kids so still and quiet was back in the labyrinth. He remembers that night all too well. Instead of spying on Crescent Claw who's sneaking behind the vending machine right now, Bill recalls the events of that fateful night thirty years ago.

He was at the palace when a strong vision came to him: the royal twins were crossing the South Gate portal. He zoomed over there and flew through the portal, landing a punch on one of the guys on the other side. He urged the twins to hurry back through the portal, quickly healing their minor bruises before scolding them on passing through the portal.

At that moment, the first intruder appeared. He claimed to be a good guy, here to warn them of another man who wanted to hurt the twins. Bill didn't trust this man, but he told the kids to run anyways. They fled to the garden labyrinth while the the first man and Bill awaited the arrival of the second intruder. They heard the gunshot before they saw him, and Bill had to tend to the critical injury the first man had gotten from the gun. He told Bill not to worry about him, but to save the kids. He left the man in the care of the King and Queen, who had finally left of the palace, just now arriving at the portal gate.

Bill raced to the labyrinth and made his way easily to the center - only to find the twins weren't there. He amplified his powers through the magic of the labyrinth and saw in his mind's eye the twins cornered in a dead end not too far away. He raced over there, but heard two gunshots. Furious, he punched the intruder again and destroyed the gun. He turned away from the bad man when he saw the twins lying in forming pools of their own blood. Both faintly smiled up at him and wished him well. Right before their life force faded forever, he placed an enchantment on them, filling the maze corridor with light. Certain that the magic would bring the twins back someday, he let his tears fall as the twins died before him, so still, so quiet.

The room shakes, jerking him from his reverie. "Huh?" Bill says aloud, not even worried about being heard. He turns around to face the room as a blue glow shines from beneath the floorboards - at the same time, a very strong thought pops up in his mind. _The portal is opening._

* * *

><p>Stan beams as the portal opens. "Thirty long years, and it's all led up to this: my greatest achievement." He glances down at his boxers. "Probably should've worn pants." His brother always made a fuss whenever he didn't wear pants.<p>

The portal crackles and emits a rod of lightning. After admiring the machine some more, he heads back out to the control panel, flipping a few switches he remembers the author choosing. The search begins for whatever lies on the other side. "If I finally pull this off, it'll all have been worth it." Once he gets his twin back and restores ol' Fiddleford, the first thing he's gonna do is gloat. Then, maybe he'll celebrate their return. But mostly he just wants the group back together again.

"I just need to keep playing it cool," Stan tells himself. "If anyone ever finds out about this..." The last time that happened, the government got involved - then those two kids appeared through the portal.

He glances at the photo of his great-nephew and niece, and he can't help but notice they look kind of like the other kids. If they ever found out about this, or if the government came back here...

"Ha, yeah right," he laughs, dismissing the thought. He pulls on a glove that has an extra finger. "I've come this far. Who could possibly catch me now?" He flips the power switch to maximum, unaware of a government agency picking up signals from the portal.

Nor is he aware of an angry triangle crossing back through the window into the Kingdom.


End file.
